Rhonda Franklin, Rashaunda Henderson, Netra Pillay, Heena Rathore, Abhay Samant, Alex Stutts, and Tom Weller
For the past 10 years, the IEEE Microwave Theory and Technology Society (MTT-S) International Microwave Symposium (IMS) has been the host event for the noteworthy outreach enrichment activity Project Connect (PC). PC is a program that aims to broaden participation in the field of wireless/microwave engineering, in partnership with the Education Committee of the MTT-S.
Financial support comes from the Society’s flagship conference, industry partners, federal agencies in the United States, and private donors. Organized by a committee of volunteers from academia and industry, PC takes place annually in conjunction with IMS. The goal is to provide students with exposure to outstanding industry and educational opportunities and to firsthand access to faculty, practicing engineers, and experts to learn about graduate school and career advancement.
Thanks, in large part, to the incredible support from the IMS Organizing Committee and dozens of engineering professionals who share their time and knowledge with student participants, the impact of the program has been awesome. In its first 10 years, there have been 150 student participants who were either undergraduate or graduate students from one of 45 different universities. The ethnic and gender demographics of the student participants are notable: at least 55% of the participants have been female, and 77% have been students of color.
Even more outstanding is the fact that PC students pursue graduate degrees at three to four times the national average in the United States. Of the 49 students in the 2014–2020 cohorts who received their B.S. degrees at least one year after participating in PC, 49% have completed a master’s program, and 12% are in or have completed a Ph.D. program. Moreover, the current professional positions of the 2014–2022 cohorts are predominantly in the RF/microwave/wireless field and graduate school.
With numbers like this, it is clear that spending time with these students is as good for the MTT-S, IMS communities, and wireless/microwave industry as it is helpful for the students themselves. If you will be attending IMS between 11 and 16 June 2023, please consider joining the PC Industry Mixer on Wednesday afternoon (14 June) and the video presentations made by the students on Thursday afternoon (15 June).
If you happen to see PC students strolling about the industry exhibition or paper competitions, take a minute to say hello and welcome them to the IMS community. Finally, if you have the opportunity, personally invite a student in an underrepresented group at your university or in your company internship program to apply for PC, and be his or her reference. Help us make the 10th year of PC the best one yet.
You can e-mail imsprojectconnect@gmail.com for more information about how to help connect your students to PC and how you can volunteer to work with the organizing team.
Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/MMM.2023.3242915